Tag Archives: Ringo Starr

Recollection is a project to review my record collection. I will listen to an album I own and review it. The album will be chosen randomly by computron. Today computron chooses…

Album: Real LoveArtist: The BeatlesReleased: 1996Format(s) I own it on: CD

This four song CD single was released in 1996 along-side The Beatles’ collection of bootlegs and rarities. The Anthology project was huge. My family watched the documentary as it aired on ABC, I bought the VHS box set and watched it over and over and over again. I bought all three double-disc Anthology CD sets. When I was in Vancouver, I saw a record store selling both the CD single for Free As A Bird and Real Love.

Those two songs were recorded from demos made by John Lennon. These unfinished songs were handed to the surviving Beatles by Lennon’s widow Yoko Ono. After Lennon’s murder on December 8, 1980, there was no hope The Beatles could ever reunite. There’s absolutely no way The Beatles could exist without John Lennon. The Beatles were John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr and without one of them, it wouldn’t be The Beatles.

This was the next best thing. A home recording of John Lennon’s which surviving The Beatles could clean up and overdub onto. The final result was… okay. It’s a good song. It’s not brilliant, but it’s a good song. Is it as good as the output that made the band legendary, probably not, but it’s enjoyable.

The three B-sides on the record are a live rendition of “Baby’s In Black” which is often overwhelmed by the screaming of teenage girls, a remix of “Yellow Submarine,” and a basic track of “Here, There and Everywhere.”

“Baby’s In Black” was recorded at Hollywood Bowl in 1965, but that song wasn’t included on the American released Live At The Hollywood Bowl. Lennon introduces the song in a very John Lennon fashion.

The remix of “Yellow Submarine” puts the sound effects more prominent. It’s not anything you’d want to listen to when you have the proper release of the song.

“Here, There And Everywhere” is a stripped down recording. Paul McCartney’s guiding vocals really illustrate how sweet his voice is. There’s a few bum notes on the recording, but you can really see what makes McCartney one of the great songwriters and singers. Near the end of the song, the Beatle harmonies come in and prove just how good those Beatles really were.

Peace and love. Peace and love. This is the second time Computron has chosen a Ringo Starr record, and neither of them are one of his good records.

I don’t know if I ever listened to this record. It was given to me by Cari and Adam when they received it for Being There. I do know that when I went to find it on my computer, it wasn’t there. Also, I should say that I own a few Ringo records… some of which I actually enjoy, but unlike how the current trend might imply, Ringo does not occupy 9% of my record collection.

Listening to this record, it’s hard to believe that this is an album made by a former-Beatle. This album is almost a parody of the Ringo-sound, and I don’t think anyone would be surprised to hear that it’s not a great record.

Ringo has made good records. His album Ringo and Goodnight Vienna are perfect examples, as those records are filled with some of the best songwriters or his era; Harry Nilsson, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Elton John, George Harrison, Randy Newman, Allen Toussaint and more. Choose Love features the songwriting of Ringo Starr, Mark Hudson, and Gary Burr. Those two must be living a dream, working with a Beatle, but for a Beatle to work with those two, is disappointing to say the least.

Finally, can we talk about the cover? Who shot this? It’s a terrible photo. It looks like Ringo has six fingers. It looks like his thumb and pinky are touching (as they are, and then his remaining four fingers are doing the Vulcan salute.

Highlights

Umm…

Lowlights

“Give Me Back The Beat” is HORRIBLE. Oh my lord, Ringo!

What were you thinking when you wrote “Don’t Hang Up?” Did you not learn anything from hanging out with John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison?

Back in 1998, The Beatles were riding high on the post-Anthology wave. They made a huge TV event out of a documentary on their career and released three double albums of rarities and outtakes. Included were two new songs “Free As A Bird” and “Real Love,” both of which did quite well in the charts. It was the motherflippin’ Beatles.

Ringo Starr, famed Beatle drummer, released this record of new, mostly terrible, songs.

Amongst them, Starr felt the need to perform a cover of The Beatles song “Love Me Do.” Sigh. Okay. “Love Me Do” is actually an enjoyable song when The Beatles performed it, but I feel that Stephin Merritt of The Magnetic Fields put it perfectly when he reviewed the album for Time Out Magazine, “Even his version of Lennon-McCartney’s “Love Me Do” only points up the insipid lyrics.” It’s true. Somehow Lennon & McCartney made “Love, love me do, you know I love you” repeated ad nauseum enjoyable… Starr does not repeat this success.

Yet, the list of credits on this album is incredible. Just look at the tags for this entry. It’s kind of incredible. And yet… we have the results that we have.